Monday, June 22, 2015

Alyssa's Story

Picture this: America’s
monetary system fails, plunging the nation into chaos. Who will survive? Will
anarchy prevail?This is the premise of Alyssa’s Story by Mort Stump, a farmer
and teacher from Southeastern Pennsylvania German country. His roots are firmly
embedded in his family, his heritage, the land and his faith. He has made it
his mission to educate others about what the future might hold, and how to
prepare to weather the storms that lie ahead, including those on the national
level as well as those in the hearts of the individual. Welcome to Book Blather, Mort.

An Essay of Questions

Who really is Mort Stump? Sure,
you probably just read Mort Stump’s short Biography, but does it really give
you a feel on who he is? Is he a young aspiring author full of new ideas . . . or
is he just an old coot languishing in the old days? Could he be described as
progressive or regressive?

Does he really have vision, or
is he merely a dreamer? Does he really love people, care for his country, and
want to save both, or did he just write a book with no cause in mind? Was there
a noble purpose in writing Alyssa’s Story,
or did he just do it for fame and fortune?

Are the truths in his book
really truths and the values he purports in the book actually values that are
vital to a healthy society, or are they simply fictional musings? Will you just
enjoy reading the tale, or will it make you think and ponder?

Could his characters be real,
down-to-Earth people, or are they Hollywood-type, created for the movies
superheroes and heroines? Did some of the events in Alyssa’s Story
actually occur, or were they all manufactured in his imaginative mind?

But most importantly, will
some of the events in the book eventually come to pass down the road, and will
you then be prepared for the consequences? Need answers? You’ll have to read
the story to find them.

Follow the fascinating
adventures of Alyssa as she and her family meet the challenges produced by the devastating
failure of the US dollar. Learn how they overcome the upheaval in their lives
through their remarkable ingenuity, dedicated hard work, unbridled compassion
for others, and enduring faith, enabling them to survive the most catastrophic
regression in their nation’s history.

Excerpt from Alyssa’s Story

“I was curious about something
else,” Jeremiah said. “How did the idea of using coins as a medium of exchange
catch on?”

“Money is only good if the users
have faith in it,” Titus said. “I understand the dollar failed because China
switched its debt over to Euros or something like that; I’m not exactly sure.
Euros are paper money too, but people still have faith in it, so they work as
an accepted medium of exchange. Maybe not in this country, but at least around
the rest of the world they do. For decades, the dollar was backed by gold or
silver, so the holders of dollars knew they could exchange dollars for
something with a known, universal value. Ever since the US government abandoned
the gold standard, that faith has been waning.

"On the other hand, coins
have been used in exchange for goods for centuries. They have an intrinsic
value. The metals in them were worth something even if the government that
issued them went sour. Several of our brothers are in the wrecking/reclamation business.
Last year when copper prices skyrocketed, they became aware that pennies have a
value of their own, well above one cent, which is all any bank would give you
for them. We all started saving them. Then last year the feds pointed out that
it was illegal to melt down coins. So what? We were only saving them. Around
Christmas I read that a penny was only 5% copper and the rest mostly zinc;
burst that theory. However, a nickel was 75% copper. So we started saving them
too. In fact, it was revealed that the government was spending 1.2 cents to
make every penny and 7.9 cents to make a nickel. Then they sold them for only
one cent and five cents respectively. Boy, was that bad business. Bottom line
is – we have faith in the value of the metals in coins, even if the government
issuing them is bankrupt. Metal is metal, coins are coins. We have faith in
them, so we honor them. Seems to be working so far.”

“But how did you come up with the
low prices for everything?” Lois asked.

“Accidentally, I guess,” Titus responded.

“Maybe not,” Aaron said. “Coinage
has an absolute value. But what do you base it on? Because it takes so many
pennies to buy a Euro, a barrel of oil, or an ounce of gold? What does that
matter to us? The value that our coins have is relative. How many pennies it
takes to buy a ton of hay, a bushel of corn, a flashlight, or a watermelon?”

“I know that one,” I declared,
“five.”

“Yes, you’re right, little
cousin,” Aaron continued. “Think how people that had tens of thousands of
dollars in the bank, now have some metal half dollars and quarters in their
pockets. And those who had a few hundred dollars, now have about the same.”

“The collapse was an equalizer,”
Dad said. “Like Dr. Fleming and Harvey said earlier today: ‘everyone’s in the
same boat’.”

“Isn’t that funny,” Josh
remarked. “What the Communists in other countries and Socialists in this
country were trying to do for years – make us all equal – was accomplished by
our own federal government’s poor fiscal policy.”